From: bobnospam@gmail.com
On 12/4/2021 2:25 AM, SolutionsDIY wrote:
> On Fri, 3 Dec 2021 17:01:37 -0500, "Jim Wilkins"
> wrote:
>
>> "Bob F" wrote in message news:sodr9b$v5o$1@dont-email.me...
>>
>> On 12/3/2021 10:55 AM, Jim Wilkins wrote:
>>> "Bob F" wrote in message news:sobi1v$1g2$1@dont-email.me...
>>>
>>> Solar alternatives are not cheap or easy.
>>>
>>> -----------------------------
>>> Solar is getting cheaper.
>>> https://hqsolarpower.com/100-watt-12-volt-monocrystalline-so
ar-panel-kit-w-30a-pwm-charge-controller/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAnaeNBhCU
RIsABEee8XIIJYAmm3nb252reEibE91XrewQyptgs_ryQYJftgkFa12ENtiZCAaAj6NEALw_wcB
>>>
>>> I paid about the same $120 a few years ago for a 100W panel and a 20A
>>> controller, minus the cables. You still need a battery and probably an
>>> inverter to have 120V AC that will run some but not all equipment. A
>>> laptop with an auto/air power supply can run directly from the battery. I
>>> bought a Bestek 300W true sine inverter for $50 that removes the difficult
>>> question of if the crude output of a modified sine inverter will damage
>>> something, though 300W isn't a lot of power. That makes a small practical
>>> system for around $170 in hardware plus the price of the battery. Without
>>> the inverter it's marginally enough to run my Alpicool C20 as a freezer
>>> all day and maybe all night, with two 12V 18Ah AGM batteries, and it looks
>>> like it could handle the 3x larger T60 fridge + freezer.
>>>
>>> Adding a second $100, 100W solar panel gives a comfortable margin for a
>>> laptop and other small loads. A laptop running Win7 can be set up as a
>>> television so you'd be well equipped for comfortable dry camping. If you
>>> have a larger AC-powered refrigerator you need a true sine inverter that
>>> can deliver its starting surge, perhaps 1000 - 1500W briefly though my two
>>> small fridges each draw less than 100W after the surge.
>>>
>>> A larger system quickly raises the difficulty of making your own heavy
>>> electrical cables. The wire and accessories sold for high power car audio
>>> are somewhat helpful. Otherwise you need heavy duty crimpers for battery
>>> and inverter terminals and the MC4 connectors on solar panels. Don't waste
>>> your time with too-thin wire and its excessive voltage drops.
>>> jsw
>>
>>
>> And you think this is a solution for an apartment dweller?
>>
>> Not that I have any objection about solar. I would do it myself except
>> for all the poplars in the yard south of mine, and the limited southern
>> exposure of my roof.
>> -------------------------
>>
>> That's for the reader to decide, based on their individual circumstances. A
>> south facing balcony or patio might make it physically possible if not
>> economically wise. It's quite practical if you have no other source of
>> electricity, i.e. 'dry' camping or a grid outage.
>
> I love the idea of solar, and if I saved up, might be able to buy one
> of the cheaper panels after many weeks of saving but I live in a
> north-facing apartment, so don't see how it would work with any degree
> of worthwhile success.
>
> I think some sort of wind turbine on the balcony might do better, but
> I just don't have those kind of skills as well as never having seen
> any wind technology on any small scale.
>
> I DIY a lot, but not electrically and I just don't have the skillset
> for that, nor the kind of money for those types of solutions.
> Fortunately humanity has existed on low-tech for millenia, so
> hopefully more such ideas will come.
>
>
You could buy/build a "bicycle" generator to charge a large battery
which you could use for re-charging devices or operating a small LED light.
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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